April 20, 2018

Medicine Hat College (MHC) is excited to partner with Grasslands Public Schools to offer dual credit programming to high school students for the 2018/2019 school year.

This partnership will provide students an opportunity to earn college credits in: pre-employment welding, criminal justice, health care aide and university transfer courses.

For Grasslands, this aligns with both an overall strategy of redesigning programming and opportunities at their high schools; helping to make them more personalized, flexible and community centered as well as benefits students by streamlining their education. 

“The dual credit program presents a significant opportunity to our students. It enables them to begin studying at a post-secondary level while completing their high school education. In some cases a student could finish high school and have their first year apprenticeship complete – which is a significant advantage when seeking employment,” says Sean Beaton, assistant superintendent.

Beaton adds that he is eager to see how their partnership with MHC grows.

“We are excited about entering into this new phase with MHC as it provides many benefits for our students. The Brooks Campus has been an important part of the community for many years, so it is nice to have the administrations working alongside each other with a common goal – to benefit students and the citizens of Brooks.” 

According to Cindy Slenders, director of the Brooks Campus and regional stewardship, the format in which the programs are being offered will vary, however particulars are still being considered.

“We recognize some of the challenges that our rural schools face so we want to provide flexible learning options, whether that be through a blended delivery style of online and classroom or by accessing our campus facilities. We are working diligently to get the delivery of the programming right.”

Slenders mentions that she is excited to see the impact this partnership will have on students.

“This is part of our Brooks Campus revitalization. It is allowing us an opportunity to showcase the programs that we offer and support our community and local partners, while also ensuring that we help provide learners easy access to post-secondary education. We will continue to work with Grasslands to ensure that this partnership best serves their students.”

When asked what success of the partnership would look like, Scott Brandt, superintendent for Grasslands, mentions that student success and engagement would be a good indicator.

“This is one way in which we are individualizing some of the high school experience and allowing students to learn at a different pace or place. The fact that we have a campus so closely connected to our community that offers diverse programming is exciting. We see this as a really good thing for our learners and are hopeful that they will be engaged and that interest will continue to grow.”

If you would like to learn more about the programs and services available at Medicine Hat College, visit: www.mhc.ab.ca.

For information on Grasslands Public School, visit: www.grasslands.ab.ca.